The Kingdom of Urartu, a once significant ancient civilization nestled in the rugged terrain of the Armenian Highlands, flourished from the 9th to 6th centuries BC.
Read moreSection: NewsAncient PlacesAsiaHistoryImportant EventsDuring excavations in the ancient Turkish city of Diyarbakir, archaeologists made an exciting and unprecedented discovery. While digging in an area between a surveillance tower in the city´s famous defensive walls and Saint George Church, a Roman-era sarcophagus was unearthed.
Read moreSection: NewsHistory & ArchaeologyAn interdisciplinary team of archaeologists has been investigating the tallest mountain on the Greek island of Aegina since 2021: Mount Ellanio. Overlooking the Saronic Gulf, the peak holds the remnants of a 4th century Temple of Zeus Hellanios.
Read moreSection: NewsHistory & ArchaeologyAncient PlacesEuropePlutarch is a historical figure whose name is a fundamental part of the world’s shared history, standing as one of antiquity's most revered biographers and philosophers. He was born around 46 AD in the small ancient Greek town of Chaeronea in Boetia, and no one ever suspected the enduring fame he would earn in his life. However, Plutarch's influence grew to transcend time, with his works serving as a beacon of insight into the lives of notable figures of ancient Greece and Rome, offering timeless wisdom that continues to shape modern thought. What was the life story of this ancient Greek philosopher? And how has he contributed to our world?
Plutarch, Whose Name Resounds Through HistoryPlutarch's early life was steeped in the rich cultural and intellectual milieu of ancient Greece. Raised in a family of wealth and prominence, he received a comprehensive education in philosophy, rhetoric and literature, studying under some of the most eminent scholars of his time. It was during his formative years that he developed a profound reverence for the teachings of Plato and Aristotle, whose philosophies would deeply inform his own intellectual pursuits.
His family was influential in the local town of Chaeronea, located just 30 kilometers (19 miles) east of famed Delphi. In many ways, his prominent family meant for him to succeed in life, as can be seen from his name: it is a compound of the Greek words πλοῦτος, meaning “wealth,” and ἀρχός, meaning “ruler” or “leader.”
Read moreSection: NewsHistoryFamous PeopleThe Roman-Etruscan Wars represent a significant chapter in the ancient history of ancient Italy, marking the clashes between the burgeoning power of Rome and the advanced civilization of the Etruscans.
Read moreSection: NewsHistoryImportant Events
Around 30,000 years ago in Borneo, an ancient surgeon performed a groundbreaking operation on a child with a severe leg injury. Using rudimentary tools likely made of stone, they skillfully severed the bones in the child's leg, navigating through delicate tissues to prevent fatal blood loss or shock. This remarkable feat, considered the earliest known surgical procedure, predates previous estimations of humanity's advancement in medical practices.
Before this discovery, it was widely believed that major medical innovations emerged with settled agricultural societies around 7000 years ago. However, the Borneo finding challenges this notion, suggesting that advanced medical knowledge existed much earlier. The evidence from the meticulously buried remains of the amputee reveals deliberate and skilled surgical intervention, indicating a level of medical expertise previously unrecognized in ancient times.
Read moreSection: ArtifactsAncient TechnologyNewsVideosArchaeologists from Newcastle University have been working for years in Crowland, Lincolnshire around the purported site of the hermitage of Saint Guthlac, a local cult figure.
Read moreSection: NewsHistory & ArchaeologyThe advancement of DNA collection-and-analysis technology has had significant consequences for anthropology and archaeology
Read moreSection: NewsEvolution & Human OriginsSouth Africa’s Cape south coast offers many hints about how our human ancestors lived some 35,000 to 400,000 years ago during the Pleistocene epoch.
Read moreSection: ArtifactsOther ArtifactsNewsHistory & ArchaeologyThe lore of King Arthur and his famed sword persists, even though Excalibur’s whereabouts or very existence remain unsolved and unproven.
Read moreSection: NewsGeneralMyths & LegendsEuropeThroughout scientific history, the narrative surrounding Neanderthals has often portrayed them as inferior to Homo sapiens, yet recent anatomical evidence challenges this notion.
Read moreSection: NewsHuman OriginsScienceVideosn ancient times, no army was truly powerful without a cavalry. The equivalent of modern tanks and special forces, cavalrymen were the terror of the ancient battlefields.
Read moreSection: NewsHistoryAncient TraditionsAin Dara is a small village in the northwest of Aleppo, Syria, which, until 2018, boasted a remarkable structure – the Ain Dara Temple, located just west of the village.
Read moreSection: ArtifactsAncient TechnologyNewsAncient PlacesAsiaSeptimius Severus, the African emperor, ascended to power in 193 AD, heralding the inception of the Severan dynasty, a transformative epoch in Roman history.
Read moreSection: NewsVideosHistoryFamous PeopleThe Medici family, prominent during the Italian Renaissance, wielded immense power in Florence and beyond. Rising from humble beginnings as bankers, they ascended to become one of Europe's most influential dynasties. Their patronage of the arts catalyzed the Renaissance, nurturing talents like Michelangelo and Leonardo da Vinci. However, their rule was not without controversy, marked by political intrigue, alliances and betrayals. Despite facing exile and assassination attempts, their legacy endures, shaping the art, politics and commerce of Renaissance Europe.
Palazzo Vecchio in Florence was a fortress-like palace which became the primary residence of the Medici family after they gained control of the city. (eyetronic / Adobe Stock)
The Medici Dynasty: Renaissance Florence’s First FamilyThe first mention of the Medici family can be traced back to a document from 1230 AD. Originally coming from the Mugello region of Italy, the origin of their name is unknown. Medici itself is the plural of medico, which means medical doctor, and as such it would be a fair guess to say that one of the family’s earliest ancestors acted as doctor in the region.
Read moreSection: NewsHistoryFamous PeopleIn the late 16th century, during Queen Elizabeth I's reign, England rose as a global powerhouse. The era birthed a peculiar aristocratic code of conduct
Read moreSection: NewsVideosHistoryAncient TraditionsIn medieval and Renaissance society and culture, celestial events were not mere spectacles in the sky
Read moreSection: NewsScience & SpaceHistoryImportant EventsWhile excavating in a lightly explored eastern region of their home country, a team of Iranian archaeologists unearthed the remains
Read moreSection: NewsHistory & ArchaeologyAncient PlacesAsia
